Men, not women, splurge more on high value fashion items at e-tailers Myntra, Abof & others

At Myntra, the proportion of male shoppers is larger than that of women and the same is reflected in revenue contribution.Shambhavi Anand | ET Bureau | July 29, 2016, 19:42 IST

It’s time to change the perception. Women aren’t the bigger spenders on fashion, at least on India’s top fashion-focused ecommerce platforms.

Men spend as much as women, or even more, as they splurge more on higher value items than women, show trends on fashion portals such as Myntra, Jabong and Abof.

This is against the conventional wisdom which holds women responsible for driving the fashion business. But, when it comes to the number of purchases, women outdo their male counterparts.

At Myntra, the proportion of male shoppers is larger than that of women and the same is reflected in revenue contribution as well, especially in the apparel category, said Priyanka Bhargav, head of consumer research and insights at the Bengaluru-based company.

At Aditya Birla’s fashion e-commerce portal Abof, the average male shopper spends 20% more than the average woman. But on volumes, both are almost equal. "We have observed that male shoppers have a larger basket size compared to women. Even among the first time shoppers at Abof, women tend to buy a single item in their first purchase compared to men," chief executive Prashant Gupta told ET.

Jabong, which has recently been acquired by Flipkart-owned Myntra, has seen equal contribution of men’s and women’s wear to its revenue, even though women are more frequent shoppers and buy across segments, whether it is western wear, footwear, home products or in the beauty category. But when it comes to products that are higher priced, men take the lead.

"Men shop for higher-value items than women, about 40 per cent higher in footwear and 10 per cent higher in clothing. This is because men are more inclined towards buying branded products compared to women where purchases are higher in non-branded section," said a Flipkart spokesperson.

It is convenient and a simpler option than going out, say fashion-focused e-commerce companies. Another reason they attribute to this is that men are increasingly becoming fashion conscious and wish to stay on top of fashion trends. Men have higher purchasing power, which allows them to spend more as compared to women.

Despite the higher spending from male shoppers, most fashion portals maintain a larger catalogue for women to choose from. "Women’s loyalty to the platform is higher and hence the larger assortment," said Jabong CEO Sanjeev Mohanty.

"Men tend to browse fewer products and hence make decisions faster," said Gupta.